Characteristics of Effective Counselors Counselors Personal Qualities 1

Characteristics of Effective Counselors

Counselor’s Personal Qualities 1. Sincere interest in the welfare of others 2. Ability & willingness to be present in client’s joy or pain 3. Recognition & acceptance of one’s strength & vitality; no need to diminish others 4. Found one’s own counseling style. Cormier & Hackney, 1999, p. 7. Attributed to Corey, and Callanan (1998).

Counselor’s Personal Qualities 5. Willingness to be vulnerable & take risks 6. Self- respect, self-appreciation, strong sense of self-worth 7. Serve as models for clients 8. Risk mistakes & admit making them 9. Growth orientation 10. Sense of humor Cormier & Hackney, 1999, p. 7. Attributed to Corey, and Callanan (1998).

Counselor’s Interpersonal Skills • • • Pragmatism Competence Respect Genuineness Promotion of client empowerment & self -responsibility Cormier & Hackney, 1999, p. 7 -8. Attributed to Egan (1998, pp. 43 -55).

Effective Helpers • Self awareness • Psychological health • Sensitivity to racial, ethnic, & cultural factors • Open-mindedness Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 13 -21. • • Objectivity Competence Trustworthiness Interpersonal attractiveness

Self-Awareness Of Your: • Need to – Give or nurture – Be liked, respected, loved; receive approval – Control, be critical, be right • Motivation for helping Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 14. • Feelings – – Happiness, satisfaction Hurt, disappointment Anger, sadness Fear, confusion • Personal strengths, limitations, & coping skills

Psychological Health • • Psychologically intact Free from over-whelming problems Recognize and manage personal issues Refer clients with problems like your own to other counselors • Seek services of a counselor for yourself, if necessary. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 14 -15.

Cultural Sensitivity Focused Culture-Specific Universal All cultures must be understood for their uniqueness. Broadens the definition of minority and argues for a subjective, more inclusive understanding of cultural impacts. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 15.

Cultural Sensitivity • Focused culture-specific: too many variables confuse multiculturalism; render it meaningless. • Universal: culture must be defined by more than just racial or ethnic factors. – – – Gender, age, and physical disabilities Race, ethnicity Sexual orientation Socioeconomic level Religion and spiritual affiliation Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 15. Cormier & Hackney, 1999, p. 8

Cultural Sensitivity • Integrative: – Focused culture-specific and the universal approach are both important – Both approaches are blended in “multicultural counseling and therapy” (Ivey, et al. , 1997). Hackney & Cormier, 1999, p. 15.

Cultural Competence • Be aware of your own cultural heritage. • Expand your range of experience. • Seek interaction opportunities with others different from yourself. • Be open to continuous learning about differing groups. Cormier & Hackney, 1999, pp. 8 -10. Attributed to Daw (1977).

Cultural Competence • Be honest about your range of experience. – Power – Privilege – Poverty – Oppression • Consider referring a client you cannot help from your own range of experience. Cormier & Hackney, 1999, pp. 8 -10. Attributed to Daw (1977).

Open-Mindedness • Freedom from fixed or preconceived ideas • Enlightenment • Internal knowledge – Perceptions, myths – Standards, values, judgments – Assumptions, biases • Knowledge of the world outside your own world Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 16.

Open-Mindedness Allows the counselor to: • Engage in honest communication. • Accommodate client’s – Feelings, – Attitudes, and – Behaviors. • Interact effectively with wide range of clients. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 16.

Objectivity • Balance involvement with objective assessment. • Provide a new perspective to “reframe” the client’s issues(s). • Avoid dysfunctional communication patterns. • Recognize manipulation attempts by the client. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 16 -17.

Objectivity • Safeguards against countertransference: – Counterproductive emotional reaction; – Entanglement of the counselor’s needs in the client relationship; – The need to please one’s client; – Over-identification with client’s problem(s); – Romantic or sexual feelings toward a client; – Need to give constant advice; – Need to form friendships. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 16 -17.

Competence • Required to transmit and build confidence and hope with clients. • Needed to develop positive client expectations from the counseling experience. • Assures ability to work with wide variety of clients and client problems. • Includes multicultural competence as previously discussed. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 17 -18.

Competence • Egan (1998): The counselor is determined, by outcome of client results, to possess the necessary – information, – knowledge, and – skills. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 17 -18.

Competence • Kleinke (1994): Includes knowledge of – psychological processes, – assessment, – clinical skills, – technical skills, – judgment, – ethics and personal effectiveness. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 17 -18.

Competence • (Strong, 1968; Strong & Schmidt, 1970; Strong & Claiborn, 1982): Includes knowledge of – – – psychological processes, assessment, clinical skills, technical skills, judgment, ethics and personal effectiveness. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, pp. 17 -18.

Trustworthiness Do not promise more than you can do, and be sure you do exactly as you have promised. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 16.

Trustworthiness • Hard to establish; easy to destroy • Includes – predictability, – reliability, – responsibility, – ethical standards. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 16.

Trustworthiness • Safeguard clients’ communications. • Respond with energy to client concerns. • Essential to – Establish a base of influence, – Encourage clients’ self-disclosure. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 16.

Trustworthiness The counselor cannot act trustworthy. The counselor must be trustworthy Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 16.

Interpersonal Attractiveness • Counselors appear “attractive” when they are seen as similar to or compatible with the client. • May be determined by instinct or selected dimensions: – Gender or age, – Demeanor or attitude, likeability and friendliness, – Worldview, theory, or approach. Hackney & Cormier, 2001, p. 18.

References • Cormier, Sherry & Harold Hackney. Counseling Strategies and Interventions, 5 th Edition. Allyn & Bacon, 1999. • Hackney, Harold L. & L. Sherilyn Cormier. The Professional Counselor: A Process Guide to Helping, 4 th Edition. Allyn & Bacon, 2001. • Sperry, Len, John Carlson, & Diane Kjos. Becoming An Effective Therapist. Allyn & Bacon, 2003.